The New York Times Calls for the End of Federal Marijuana Prohibition

NEW YORK (KRON) — The Editorial Board of the New York Times says it’s about time to legalize marijuana.

In an editorial published Sunday, the newspaper says 40 years after Congress passed a law making possession of cannabis a federal crime, the policy of prohibition has failed.

“There are no perfect answers to people’s legitimate concerns about marijuana use,” the paper writes. “But neither are there such answers about tobacco or alcohol, and we believe that on every level — health effects, the impact on society and law-and-order issues — the balance falls squarely on the side of national legalization. That will put decisions on whether to allow recreational or medicinal production and use where it belongs — at the state level.”

The editorial says allowing states to legalize or decriminalize pot while the federal ban remained in place “would leave their citizens vulnerable to the whims of whoever happens to be in the White House and chooses to enforce or not enforce the federal law.”

The Times says marijuana sales to people under the age of 21 should remain illegal.

“We recognize that this Congress is as unlikely to take action on marijuana as it has been on other big issues. But it is long past time to repeal this version of Prohibition.”

The House of Representatives recently voted to take away funding from the Drug Enforcement Administration’s efforts to fight marijuana legalization. The drug is now legal for recreational purposes in Colorado and Washington and a similar measure is expected back on the California ballot in 2016.